Gânhuà
by viva rose
Summary: Tseng/Rufus, with switching of roles. YAOI, see inside for all details. A collaborative project to write the life/interactions between Shin-Ra's heir and his bodyguard from the pre-game, up through the games, movie and beyond
1. Chapter 1

**Roleplay: "Gânhuà " TxR Chapter One:**

**[[Title:]] Gânhuà**

**[[Rating:]] R **

**[[Series:]] Final Fantasy VII **

**[[Pairing:]] **

**Tseng-Rufus [[Warning:]] YAOI. We're walking by canon but we do what we want. We characterize how we feel we should and we write as we like. You don't have to agree with how we do it, and if you don't like it, don't read it. If you do like it, please encourage us. Criticism is undesired. **

**[[JadedSilk's Thoughts:]] I've never had the chance to work with a partner who would stick with me through this idea that hatched a year or two ago. Basically I have wanted to do a life story/interaction between Tseng and Rufus. Then I discovered someone who was not only willing, but extremely talented. I have been quite pleased with characterization and character development, and look forward to seeing this all the way through to the finish. If you wonder why something is the way it is, most likely, it will all be explained in another chapter, so hold on to your horses! Some things will be canon, and some things we just don't know, so we take liberties. There are themes of violence, sexual abuse (tastefully written) murder and well...what you would expect from Turks and anyone who happens to be in the Shin-Ra family or employ. Please read at your own discretion. We hope you will enjoy the character development/degeneration and will come to love this RP. The very impressive vivarose writes Tseng, I write Rufus, and the rest of the characters are at this time, shared.**

**[[vivarose's Thoughts:]] Just some mandatory disclaimer things. We don't own anything affiliated with the FFVII Universe, that all Square's doing. This is a test, rather an experiment. If you would like to continue reading, we'll be posting the rest of this collaboration in JadedSilk's LiveJournal, please friend it if you want to read ahead:HERE **

**Please let us know if you like it!**

Chapter One:

Rufus Shin-Ra stared up at the man standing beside his father's desk. He was lean, tall and thin. In a Turk's uniform he looked far too severe and far too much like the nervous bodyguard that he was. He'd stick out like a sore thumb. The boy with the dot couldn't have been more than a teenager to begin with, and already Rufus resented his authority in his life. So what? It was just a stupid fight. It wasn't his first and it assuredly wouldn't be his last. He did have a black eye, but the other kid had a broken nose. He figured he'd given better than he got at the least.

But still, here his father was, prattling away about how security was important to this man in the penguin suit. Rufus was secure. He didn't need anyone. Especially someone who wasn't all that much older than he was. He could take care of himself. He didn't need materia and he wasn't going to let them put potion on his face. He still wouldn't, even though his father had grounded him for refusing to let anyone look at him. ( That punishment was uselessly in Rufus' opinion. If he wanted to go out he could sneak out. Nobody was going to stop him. )

The torturous lecture seemed to go on forever, thankfully eventually his father stood up, shook the young man's hand, and then steered Rufus towards him. Rufus gazed up at him with outright hostility, although he shook his hand. He didn't want to add a beating from his father for something this small. Sneaking out, it was worth it to be punished for if he was caught. This guy? He could make his life utter misery for days until he just gave up or got fired. It wouldn't be all that difficult.

His name was Tseng. Pronounced "t-s-EH-ng". And when translated into one of the various dialects of Wuatian it came out meaning "great grandfather". He had no last name, at least, not any more. It had been abandoned when he had joined the Turks two years ago as had the rest of his familiar past. Starting a new life and leaving whatever his destiny in his home county might have with its complex dynasty-cast system.

No instead he had joined up with the mercenaries called the Turks who specialized in urban and political warfare and with patience and persistence he now had his first mission. It was a little bit of a let-down however to realize that for all the advertised super-spy work you were really just going to be a glorified babysitter for a rebellious teenager, this Tseng tried not to let show. And from the glare that the young man before him was aiming in Tseng's direction it was fair to say that there was at least a mutual feeling of frustration from the boy, who didn't look a day over ten and had certainly not yet been graced by puberty. Tseng redirected his attention back to Shin-Ra Senior, his new employer. Good Shiva the man could talk. _Patience and persistence_, Tseng reminded himself like a mantra. Soon enough this too would come to pass and when the boy was nudged towards him by Shin-Ra Senior, Tseng bowed slightly and shook the boy's hand.

"Hello Sir. My name is Tseng," he kept his grip firm, but not crushing, and looked the boy straight in the eye, level and calm. The boy held himself in a self-righteous sort of way that betrayed a barely concealed sense of rebellion. Tseng decided then and there that he would meet this head on and not be driven away by the likes of this boy. _Don't underestimate him_, he reminded himself. The kid was tense as if expecting violence, Tseng noted and the Turk released his hand and glanced at the boy's father. The old man dismissed them with a wave and nothing more, he was back to running the massive corporate empire that was the Shin-Ra Company.

Nice to meet you, Rufus said lowly. Blue eyes would not settle on any one thing, he was tense.

A combination of angry, frustrated, rebellious and.... tired. Rufus didn't say anything past that. He was sure the orders of what to do would start soon. Honestly he just wished this... Tseng...would leave him be. He wanted to go to his room, rest for a bit, do his homework perfectly, turn it into his father for approval of perfection.... and then try to avoid another beating. Life was complicated enough without outside interference.

He let go of the others hand quickly, just barely managing to not wipe his hand off on his pants. This was...the last problem he needed in his day.

One of Tseng's eyebrows raised ever so slightly, the boy in front of him giving off the impression of a caged and angry animal more and more, a well cultured and trained animal but angry none the less. Not unlike the animals that performed in a circus, beaten till they got the trick right, a reluctance to do the tricks, but knowing it was necessary to survive. More information to be stored about his new charge. Tseng stepped aside and without a word opened the door for them to leave, Shin-Ra Senior's attention was on something else entirely and leaving now seemed like the opportune time.

Once out of the room Tseng fell into perfect step just slightly behind and to the side of his charge, "Rufus" he believed the boy's name was. His father had mentioned it but mostly had neglected to give off "familiar" vibe that one usually got from parents regarding their children. Perhaps had this circumstance been different, the Turk and the boy not being at such odds already, Tseng might have offered information about himself or even extended the metaphorical hand in friendship, but he did neither of those things. His job was to keep the boy out of trouble and keep him alive, not to be his friend. However, it wasn't his job to be his master either and Tseng wondered if Rufus realized that. Time would tell.

Silently the Turk kept pace with Rufus as they left his father's office. With Shin-Ra there really was no such thing as "sneaking" about, the company had power to monitor everything and did so quite efficiently, unless you knew how to manipulate the system. Which he was certain Rufus knew how to do. Perhaps the most complicated task Tseng would face would be ensuring the boy didn't attempt to do so. Shin-Ra Senior had mentioned that it was one of his son's more aggravating habits. For now Tseng would quietly observe from a slight distance, leave the boy to his own devices and see how this progressed. When they reached Rufus's room Tseng silently followed the boy inside and placed himself against the wall, hand folded in front of him watching the blonde boy. Not entirely disappearing, but fading slightly into the background. Weighing out the boy's reactions, and later would see what was most effective for communicating with him.

Rufus sighed. Well this was an interesting turn of events. He hadn't expected the man to follow him all the way into his room. He tossed his book-bag onto the bed, and sat down, unlacing his shoes and kicking them off neatly next to the bed, he sat with his back to the headboard, and put himself facing Tseng. He clasped his arms around his knees, watching the other. The silence was painful, and he wouldn't let him win.

He ignored the aching in the side of his face and his eye, and instead grabbed his mp3 player and turned it on to something loud and angry. He reached for his math book then, and grabbed paper and a pencil. He would just ignore the other until he exploded, but not offer him the option of his back. He couldn't trust anyone. Especially someone working for his father.

There was an ache in his chest that he hated right now, a tightness that feared violence and pain and hated his life and wished there was some way to escape it. The ache that felt an awful lot like he was young and scared and needed anything that he would never ask for, and his young pride would be shattered by. Like a hug.

Tseng watched Rufus with only his eyes as the younger boy moved and finally settled to stare at him, arms wrapped around his knees, very much like a child. Which was funny because try as he might Tseng could not mentally equate the boy in front of him to that of a "child", physically he certainly was still but there was a keen mental edge under that black eye. Rufus stared at him a while longer and Tseng stared back, not at him but _through_ and beyond him, like trying to find a "magic picture" hidden in all the noise. Rufus made no move to speak and Tseng saw no reason to break the silence. This was after all, Rufus's home turf that he had just invaded, he was in no position to make the moves. Also he knew that it had somehow become a silent contest of wills, and patient as ever Tseng would wait.

He made no motion as Rufus turned his mp3 player on to a deafening volume and began to work on his homework. The music was the equivalent of someone working on a house, Tseng noted this and the unconscious wincing that the boy made. Perhaps from the black eye, perhaps from the volume of the music destroying his eardrums early, or perhaps it was something else entirely that ran deeper and far more painful beneath the surface. He stood quietly not moving, letting Rufus attack his math with grim determination, for the better part of half an hour and then he silently moved.

Tseng's movements weren't sudden or abrupt but flickering like part of the shadows playing on the wall. He went into the boy's bathroom, how grand it was, and got a small bowl from under the sink, filled it with ice cold water and added a few drops of comfrey oil. The herb was highly potent and grew wild in Wutai, which was known for its exotic herbal concoctions and medicine that mixed magic to do its healing. This oil extracted from the leaves, had been given to him by his mother before he left with the Turk recruitment. It was a potent herb and too much of it would cause toxicity, but it was traditionally used in managing inflammation and pain with broken bones, sprains and bruises. He'd been lucky enough not to need to use it yet, but always kept it with him in the small traditional glass vial.  
Giving the water a slight swirl with his hand to mix in the oil, he took a cloth and returned to the bedroom, and placing the bowl and cloth on Rufus's bedside table, he lightly touched a hand to the boy's shoulder to get his attention, see his reaction.

Rufus had noticed the others movement, but had let it go, he was deeply embroiled in his work. Part of him panicked when the edge of the bed dipped under the dark haired man's weight, and Rufus' first reaction was to fight. A reaction that he stifled out of pure exhaustion, thankfully.

He immediately zeroed in on the cloth and water, and looked confused. So confused he took his earphones out and stared at the other like he was from the moon and he did not understand. Was his face dirty? Did this Tseng... want him to wipe off that dot for him?

The water smelled strong, but good, and it didn't smell like poison. He blinked.

What are you doing? He asked, tone surprisingly civil.

Tseng _almost_ smiled at the question, but instead simply nodded to Rufus's face. The hit that had blackened his eye must have been a hard one, though the boy probably hadn't realized it, his eye had swollen shut from the body's natural inflammation reaction. There was nothing aesthetically that could be done for it at this point, but it was dangerous to leave it uncared for around the tender tissue of the eyeball itself.

"Your eye will remain swollen shut for several days if you leave it unattended until the swelling goes down," Tseng stated matter-of-factly. It was dangerous to have a blind spot like this especially should another confrontation happen, it wasn't smart war tactics, but he doubted Rufus would be interested in such philosophy at the moment. Instead he chose the more practical approach. "Kept under constant pressure like this it could damage your eye, weakening the muscles or further rupturing the blood vessels within it and putting undue stress on the optic nerve," he paused here to let Rufus absorb the information before going on. Despite the apothecary that was associated with his culture, it was a scientific one more then that of old witches tales. "I have added comfrey oil to the water, the plant is native to my home country, its sale and trade is prohibited here in Midgar due to its potency. It reduces the swelling by relaxing the blood vessels and allowing the un-clotted blood to return to the rest of the system, but prevents the clotting already formed from dissipating, it also is a mild anesthetic." He paused once more to glance at the stunning purple and black bruise on Rufus's eye. "The skin isn't broken so there should be no stinging or pain."  
Then the Turk said nothing more, leaving the obvious decision and all the other ones that came with it, to Rufus to make. The Wutain would offer assistance if it was wanted or simply step in if need be, as he doubted Rufus would openly ask for assistance and would not suffer the boy to take that blow to his pride. Caring for oneself with your vision docked in half was a feat especially when the wound was on the eye that was blinded, but he would not order the boy to do so, nor would Tseng ask permission, it was Rufus's body, his eye and thus his choice. Rufus was obviously intelligent and more than capable of thinking for himself.

Rufus stared at him a long moment. Herbs his ass, the man probably was putting dead lizard bladder on his face. Logic told him that the water didn't smell like a dead lizard, and something about a cold cloth did sound inviting. He wanted to pull away, he really did. The other part of him was exhausted. Too tired to fight and too worried about making a mistake on his homework. It was hard to do this with his eye swollen.

Okay, he said hesitantly, hands gripping into the sheets at the edge of the bed, just in case it hurt.

He'd fight him if he tried any funny stuff.

Tseng met Rufus's suspicious and tired stare with a calm one of his own, allowing the boy to mull it over and not rushing him. He was pleasantly surprised when Rufus gave a reluctant "Okay" and gripped the bedsheets out of reflex giving the impression that this was not a common occurrence. Tseng nodded, and keeping his actions timed and consistent so as not to agitate the already on guard boy he soaked a quarter of the cloth, and folding it over so the other parts prevented water from dripping all over the floor and bed he gave it a slight wring. Placing one hand on the opposite side of Rufus's face, finger tips barely touching the skin as if he was handling a baby chocobo, he took the cloth and gently held it up to the swelling bruise. He was careful no to directly press against the tender tissue but instead let the cloth's own weight do most of the work. He held it there for a minute or two and then re-soaked it to keep the cloth cool and let it rest of the bruise again. The Turk said nothing and repeated this several more times, frowning slightly and brow ever so furrowed in concentration as he worked. It was a slow and gradual process and oil had to be absorbed through the skin and permeate the blood vessels but not as shocking to the system as putting ice on the damaged part. Finally he tilted Rufus's head with just the slightest push of his finger tips to inspect the bruise again. The swelling had reduced greatly and the eye was watering slightly as pressure was easing off it and it was allowed to open again. That was enough for now, the boy could repeat the procedure later at night before going to bed if he wanted, but the process had started and the body would manage it from here. Tseng refolded the cloth and rested it on the side of the bowl.

"Try not to fuss with it, as tempting as that will be," he said, not ordering, but again suggesting. He knew the flesh would shiver and twitch and human inclination to fuss with things could interfere with the healing. And with that he stood to leave Rufus to his homework without further interruption.

Rufus was unaccustomed to being touched kindly. He did not shy though, from the others touch. He was careful, gentle, and the cloth felt better than he wanted to admit. He leaned into it just slightly even as the other pulled away and looked him over. Amazingly enough he could see out of it a little...and it was much less painful. This drew a rough and quiet:

Thanks. I don't need it, but thanks.

Rufus couldn't admit that he did, and he wouldn't, but after the other had left, if he left, he would probably put some more of the water on it before he slept. He would have to make sure the other didn't see him, of course, because that was beyond his pride's ability to withstand. When he left, the blond went back to his homework, checking, double checking. Each line was perfect, each number was perfect, the answer was perfect. He couldn't fail.

And when he had done all his work he stacked the books up neatly, took a deep breath, and headed off down the hall to his father's study, where he knocked lightly once at the door. The elder was home, more than likely doing more paperwork. Bracing his shoulders, he let himself in when he was bidden.

The encounter overall had been a positive one Tseng decided, and when the boy had thanked him, he had turned back inclined his head in the gesture of a bow,

"You are welcome," the subtle nuances such as conjunction in Rufus' native tongue were still difficult for the Wutain, even after having lived in Midgar for two year. He did not leave entirely, put placed himself outside the boy's door reflecting on the encounter and Rufus's reaction.

The barely discernible leaning back against his fingers and the boy's slight relaxing, it was a good signal. Although Tseng suspected that this was only due to the boy's currently exhausted state and he was sure that Rufus would provide plenty of challenges for him as Tseng's employment with Shin-Ra continued. But for right now he was just grateful that things had gone smoothly. A good start often made things easier.

When Rufus left his room to report to his father with his homework in hand, shoulders slumped slightly, Tseng fell into step behind him like a secondary shadow, and like a fly on the wall took everything in around him. The way the Rufus had braced himself, entering his father's study as if he were going to the dentist to get a root canal instead of getting his homework checked. Another mental memo to keep in the steadily growing file of the interactions between Rufus and Shin-Ra Senior.

Tseng did not press his ear against the door after it closed shut behind Rufus, his hearing was acute enough. Instead he merely stood silently to the side of the door, waiting for his charge to return, his mind running on the obvious potential that the Shin-Ra family was not a happy one, and his ears listening and taking in everything.

The first thing to hit Rufus was the smell of very expensive bourbon, and his stomach knotted. The man behind the desk looked unreasonably furious, and the blond boy immediately felt grave worry over problem number fourteen in his set of chemistry homework.

Sir, I brought you my homework, he said smoothly, a practiced tone showing no fear. He couldn't. He'd be beaten for showing fear too. It made sense to do nothing and show no expression, especially when Shin-Ra Senior was already sauced.

Shut your mouth. You should be working! The elder Shin-Ra said gruffly.

So Rufus said nothing more, just handed over the books and papers. For half an hour he stood there, waiting. At the feared chemistry problem, there was a pause, and Rufus tensed his stomach muscles and took a silent deep breath, letting it out. The fist to the stomach came quickly, as expected. The big man had come up over the top of his desk with a lightning fast quickness not common in one of his girth.

I pay for you to go to school! To take the best classes! This! This is unacceptable! the man railed, a kick to the ribs his next reward. Go ahead, turn this in! When you fail you will pay from your own pocket to take your classes again!

Rufus refused to make a sound, gasping for air he would not give in or give his drunken father the satisfaction of fear or pain.

Yes sir, he gasped, when the pain stopped enough that he could respond.

He never hit him where the bruises would show, but Rufus' ribs were starting to permanently turn black and blue. He gathered his papers as his father shoved them at him, and curled them back to his chest. Someday he wouldn't be afraid anymore. Someday everyone would be afraid of him, and he would make them all pay.

You are dismissed, His father said, sitting to his desk like a fat, red faced, wheezing toad. Not for the first time this week, Rufus wished his mother were here, not away on holiday...

Heading to the door, he tried to make the tiny tremors of pain in his hands stop. Out in the hall, he tried to show no fear, no sign of pain or being ruffled. Tseng would only laugh if knew the beating Rufus' pride had taken again. This was a fight he could never win, and he hated it.

Tseng said nothing as Rufus emerged from the study that smelled like someone was marinating something in bourbon. The Turk had heard the old man's raving and the blows, despite them being muffled by the heavy oak door that led to the study. The concept of corporal punishment was not unfamiliar to him, Tseng's own father had not spared the rod in the slightest, but his father had by no means been a cruel man.

There was a mark of Rufus' white uniform from where his father's finally polished shoe had connected with the youth's side. Tseng did not address it, but fell into step slightly behind Rufus. The Turk's hand reached out and delicately touched the underside of Rufus's elbow from where his arms tightly held his books and schoolwork against his chest. The blonde boy seemed shrunken somehow, smaller after the encounter, despite his attempts to hide it with mild disgruntlement. "Let me carry your papers and books," Tseng said, it was as close as he would come to addressing the matter and hopefully the boy would not take it as an attack on his pride. It was as close as the Wutain would come to saying '_You've endured enough today, let me take this weight for you.'_ Even though this was surely a honeymoon phase, Tseng felt a surge of brotherly compassion towards the boy who's mother was absent and who's father being more and more boorish by the hour.

Rufus let him. He felt too stunned and tired to not be a little grateful at the help. When he returned to his room he took his books back, erased the problem furiously, and then left it blank before shoving his books into his bag, put away his MP3 player. Woodenly he went to draw his own bath, and find a pair of clean pajamas. His uniform was dirty, he'd have to take it for dry-cleaning in the morning. Luckily he had a spare... Tomorrow would be hell with a bodyguard tagging along. He didn't really want to face it. He took a towel and clean clothes in with him, shutting the door on Tseng so that he could just nurse his wounds in private. He didn't want anyone to see this.

When the water was deep enough he slunk in, trying not to hiss at the touch of hot water on fresh bruises. It made the old ones feel a little better though. He put his head in his hands, trying to draw on his anger and the cold nothingness he used to get by. Sadly, his grip on it felt thin.

Tseng had said nothing more as they walked silently back to Rufus's room and didn't take it personally when the youth shut the door in his face. The Turk's phone chirped softly and starting a habit that he would not break till the day he died, he flipped the phone open to see a text message from Verdot. It was almost cheerful and gave him instructions as to where his room was and congratulated him on surviving his first day as Rufus's bodyguard and of course warned him not to let his guard down. The young Turk allowed himself just the slightest smirk of amusement before flipping the phone shut again and going to the spare room down the hall as per Verdot's instructions. He found his few belongings already in the room and began to get ready himself for bed. Tomorrow would be a long day and he had to come up with a game plan to make it as painless as possible. Obviously Rufus would be at full pre-teen rage tomorrow and Tseng considered sliding is presence further into the background as some bodyguards did. But that wasn't how Turks worked. They were not subtle in the least so there would be no camouflaging his presence.

There was also the matter of minding Rufus's pride. How to guard him but still allow the boy some amount of autonomy. There was also the matter of should a confrontation occur again. But then again, his assignment had been to protect the boy, not play psychologist to him. That right there made everything crystal clear and with that thought in mind, Tseng turned in.

The next morning he was up before most of the maids were, made coffee for himself in his room and was dressed and silently standing to the side of Rufus's door slightly further off then he had the other day, awaiting the boy. Although he was half expecting Rufus to start giving him hell now, he suspected it might be too early in the morning for such creative thinking.

Rufus was dressed, painfully, and had taken one of the pain pills a friend had sold him after school. If he could move all the better. Slinging his bag over his shoulder, he did what he always did to a bodyguard. He found the emergency fire escape door in the back of his closet, disabled the wiring on it, and let himself down into the escape hall. He would go without him, even for a while.

Tseng had waited but not long, it was just over a minute passed the schedule and Rufus had not made an appearance. A quick picking of the locked door with a hairpin showed that Rufus was indeed capable of early morning creativity and Tseng mentally applauded him for a moment before shutting the door behind him and going out of the mansion via a side door. He had most of the area memorized, it had been in his briefing before he came to the residence and a quick visualization of the property's map in his head told him that Rufus's school was approximately two blocks south and at a flat out run the whole way he could be there in just under seven minutes via sidewalk. No sense in running though, Tseng cut directly through the south end of the Shin-Ra home property, scrambled over the iron fence where it dipped in a slight slope and found himself across the street from the school. Honestly he didn't expect Rufus to enter the school via the front gates, but then again with the most recent display of ingenuity he wouldn't put it passed the boy. And there was no sign of him on the surface street so Tseng crossed and entered the school gates and then stood against the inner wall of the gates, out of sight from the outside of the school and most passerby unless you happened to be looking for someone there, silently waiting. There were approximately twenty minutes till class started.

Rufus knew almost without knowing, where and when he would find him. He tried to avoid him but the throng of students he was walking within pushed him that way. He was in no hurry to be in the building, and he did see a few of his friends, he hoped to blend in, and drifted towards them. It was going to be a long day. He knew that. The pain pill made him feel a little fuzzy and his stomach cramp with sickness. He didn't feel like eating, but probably should have.

Tseng's eyes settled on Rufus, picking the blonde out of the crowd of students, which had been a bit of a feat in and of itself. The private school was monstrous, almost its own city, between the elementary, middle and high schools all crammed within its stone walls and it had just as many students. If Tseng had to place a guess possibly around three thousand between all the grades combined. The Turk made no move to approach Rufus but watched the boy as he worked his way through the crowd over to a smaller group taking care to avoid the Wutain. A few administrators tried to encourage the children to class but their efforts were largely ignored as the students loitered, dreading the start of the school day. It also appeared as though Tseng was not the only body guard accompanying someone to school. There were a few others, large men who were smoking and talking near the gate in various uniforms that identified their profession, but no other Turks in sight. It wasn't surprising, Turks were expensive to hire after all, even for Shin-Ra, despite that Tseng wouldn't see any of the money until he himself was of legal age, half of it would go to the private Turk company anyway. One of the other bodyguards approached Tseng, waving good- naturedly at him.  
"Hey the kids are as good as gold man, let the teachers worry about them. Leave off for a bit and hang with us, the school don't like us being here anyhow," the man clapped a meaty hand on Tseng's shoulder. Tseng shot him a look, and the man quickly back peddled and his mouth formed in a silent "O" as realization dawned on him and he made a mumbled apology and headed back over to the group of waiting body guards. Tseng moved just enough to keep Rufus in his sight as the ten minute warning bell rang.

Rufus could feel Tseng's eyes on him, he knew he was watching him. He had well expected that this one would follow him. He knew that deep down he would have a hard time shaking someone as bright as the other. By the time he made it to the classroom and pulled out his books, he was ready for the day to be over. He'd steal a smoke and sneak out as soon as he could. He hated this place, almost as much as he hated being home.

He felt his shoulders slump as he reached for his pen and a notebook. There was a test tomorrow. He couldn't remember what on or why. He wasn't overly sure he cared.

Tseng had kept his distance from Rufus, crowding the boy would not help things, and didn't engage him. His charge was subdued as were must of the students, shouting and running about the school yard was something poor public schooled kids did. These were the kind of children that had been made to skip childhood and dressed in power suits and pencil skirts ready to tear into the business world and could type better then they could write by age five.

The Turk moved and stood at the back of Rufus's classroom, ignoring the glare that the teacher gave him and the lecture started. Tseng half-listened, finding it interesting, his small village in one of the less populous parts of Wutai had only gone up through the sixth grade and the training education the Turk company had given him was a crash course at best. You were always on your own to fill in the gaps. Rufus however looked less then pleased to be there, which was interesting. Most kids buried themselves in school to forget about bad family life, but if last night had been any indication, Rufus wasn't even allowed that escape. Then Tseng reminded himself that his duties to Shin-Ra did not entail shrink work.

That had been one of his weaker points in training, getting emotionally invested in his assignments. Which was why somewhere in the Wutaian's file there was a small memo denoting that long-term work that required loyalty was best suited for this trainee, which was why Shin-Ra Senior had chosen the boy in the first place.

Rufus took as many notes as he could, looking a bit irked when the boy next to him tried to pass a note, which he ignored. He knew what was coming. The shadow that had now followed him into his third class of the day was going to undoubtedly be eating lunch with him.

He always ate lunch alone, and then bought a cigarette off of one of the other boys and then would sneak out to smoke. It was a dirty habit. He detested it, but it made him feel better for a few moments. He'd drink what he could get out of the liquor cabinet if it wasn't locked at home too. He took whatever he could get, as long as it didn't involve having to actually talk to people. They were all ignorant. Dumb as chocobos and wanting to please their parents that couldn't be pleased.

He hated that occasionally he found himself in that same place. And he wished to Shiva his mother would come home soon. He didn't like when his father hit her either, but anything was better than than him being hit all the time...or worse.

The boy next to him tried to pass a note to him again, and with a tiny inaudible sigh he finally took it and opened it. The girl next to him was looking at him with longing eyes and the note was full of hearts... giving her a dirty look he crumpled up the letter and dropped it on the floor, looking back up to the teacher and away from the classroom.

No. He didn't like her, no he didn't want to 'go out' that was disgusting. All that led to was things that made babies and honestly he never wanted to touch a girl. He hoped his father wasn't noticing the lack of interest... but touching, being touched...that was gross. Doing other things even worse...

He glanced at the clock. At this point even a brawl at lunch sounded better than some silly little blond thing in a short school uniform sniffling beside him.

Tseng was personally not looking forward to lunch, he'd never quite taken to Midgarian food, it sat too heavy in his stomach, and really wanted nothing more then a simple bowl of white jasmine rice but he doubted that he'd be able to get such a thing here. The past few hours while intellectually stimulating, had been quite boring job wise, but for that he was grateful because some part of him would have still felt a little bad about fighting kids who were still half his size and easily three years his junior. But a job was a job, what could you do?

He watched with some bemusement at the girl who passed the note via her neighbor to Rufus, and bit down a chuckle at Rufus's reaction to it. Although the Wutain wasn't exactly certain as to why. The girl wasn't bad looking, as far as Midgarian girls went, it could be a maturity thing still, but somehow he doubted Rufus was worried about getting "cooties" from her.

Shin-Ra Senior would certainly want his son to carry on the family line and thus the business, the importance of an heir was one thing that hadn't changed from the Wutain to Midgarian culture. And although it left open one obvious glaring answer, Tseng reserved that for later, it could be just general lack of desire from a stressful home life. Not that any of this really was his concern, he reminded himself. But it also wasn't that surprising either.

Tseng had learned at an early age about gender and sexuality, and of course the boys and girls of the village were always daring each other with a complicated game that involved foretelling future spouses and sexual experimentation with a cup of cat's teeth that when thrown on the ground and read for a specific pattern decided who would mess around with who in front of the others and the amount of babies that would result from it in the future should they fall in love. Not unlike soothsaying, but definitely more concrete, for some odd reason Tseng had always gotten paired with boys from the village, much to the disappointment of some of the girls.

The bell signaled lunch and the students eagerly departed, Tseng trailing them. The scent of the cafeteria turned his stomach and he fought down the urge to hurl. How people ate these things he would never know. His eyes fell on Rufus, eating alone with his own tray of food. Tseng considered joining him but decided against it for now. So far the day had been hazard free from them just pretending to be politely ignoring each other. Tseng watched from the wall closest to where Rufus sat and made a mental note to himself to bring his own food in the future.

Rufus barely picked at his food, it didn't taste good on a good day and today he just wanted fresh air more than anything else. He ate the main course, offered his dessert to the large boy that occasionally has his back in fights, then slunk towards the door to the recess grounds.

It was nothing more than concrete and basketball hoops, and an air of gloom and smog. So it wasn't really fresh air. He paid one of the tall boy's for a smoke, and then dug his lighter out of his back pocket. Hoping his bodyguard wasn't following, he ducked into one of the back alleys that housed picnic tables and sad scraggly plants struggling for life. He observed them as they struggled and suffocated under rock. He felt bad for them sometimes.

He lit his cigarette and took a drag, waiting for the shaking in his hands to stop, and two drags in it did. Sometimes it felt like he was one of those plants, and this his only drop of rain. He wondered how long it would be before he snapped like one of the commissioners boys had last semester. They found him swinging from a bathroom stall frame by his belt.

It wasn't that he planned to give up and die, but he knew a lot of them didn't make it out of this hellhole, and he knew that this was the only shot he had. If he were home schooled it would only make it worse. He wouldn't even have this...

He frowned at a brick wall before glancing up into the sky. Those below the plate didn't even have this much air.

Questions on Chinese language found in this fic? go: HERE


	2. Chapter 2

**[[Title:]] "Gǎn huà "  
[[Rating:]] R  
[[Series:]] Final Fantasy VII  
[[Pairing:]] Tseng-Rufus  
[[Warning:]] YAOI. We're walking by canon but we do what we want. We characterize how we feel we should and we write as we like. You don't have to agree with how we do it, and if you don't like it, don't read it. If you do like it, please encourage us. Criticism is undesired.  
[[Jadedsilk's Thoughts:]] Some things will be canon, and some things we just don't know, so we take liberties. There are themes of violence, sexual abuse (tastefully written) murder and well...what you would expect from Turks and anyone who happens to be in the Shin-Ra family or employ. Please read at your own discretion. We hope you will enjoy the character development/degeneration and will come to love this RP. The very impressive vivarose writes Tseng, I write Rufus, and the rest of the characters are at this time, shared. **

**If you read nothing else in the author's notes please make note of this****:**

**Hello everyone. As of today ****Gǎn huà will only be posted on the co-author's livejournal. The link to said livejournal is in my profile. You must friend her account in order to read the fic from here on out. I will not be posting up anymore chapters and as you can see, all other ones have been removed.**

**Those of you who were at chapter 28 for here on , you will need to start at chapter 25 on livejournal.**

**Any art links for the fic will go up on my own livejournal account which I will post a link to in my profile page here. **

**Hope to see you all over in livejournal and that you keep reading, because the story is just about to get good.**

**Thank you all for your love and support, we hope that it will continue as we move to fully integrate ourselves into Livejournal.**

**Thank you and goodnight.**

**Much love,  
**

**Vivarose/puerdemon**

**

* * *

**

Tseng let Rufus get a bit more distance between them before following, taking in the habits of the younger boy. The air outside hadn't been much better then that inside but at least the reek of the food was gone. He waited a minute or two before following Rufus into one of the back alleys that ran along the side of the school. The scraggly bushes were the first sight of greenery Tseng had seen since they got to the school and they looked sickly at that. The comparison between them and the boy was uncanny.

Tseng looked to Rufus, the last of the cigarette in his hand, the boy smoking it down to the stub. There was still time before lunch ended. He looked at the bushes and then walked towards them and crouched next to one of them. Pruning small plants was a common past time for Wutaians and a quick look at the plant told Tseng all he needed to know. He looked at Rufus directly for the first time that day and offered him a small smile.

"This whole place is like death for everything it touches." One of his hands gently stroked the straggly branches of the plant and he stood. "But, perhaps if someone extends a hand to help, a few might survive." He shrugged and returned his face to a neutral expression and leaned against the wall opposite of Rufus. Let the boy interpret it for himself. Let him make the connection, he was certainly smart enough to, but then again it was probably more a matter of _willingness_ rather than _wanting_.

Rufus stared at the plants, brow furrowed. He'd heard the man approach, and wasn't surprised. He was surprised he wasn't giving him shit about this habit. "They want to live, but not a single one of us can do something as fruity as prune them, we'd get the shit kicked out of us." Rufus said lowly.

"Might be why all of us are the way we are," he said, making sure to stub the cigarette out well and field strip the filter. No one needed to know what he did out here.

At least no one had approached him yet to pick a fight. He kicked a foot absently.

"Did you eat? Food here's shit, but if you ask up to the kitchen they have some plain stuff. Sometimes I eat some of that."

He didn't know what he was extending a kindness towards his new leash and collar, but he did look hungry, and a little sad staring at the shrubs like that.

Tseng nodded in silent agreement. Things he might not have thought even a half second about doing in his home country were liable to be stigmatized or worse here. He was at least glad that Rufus was addressing him civilly, he had almost expected to be ignored or have profanity thrown at him like a large rock. The Turk pinched the bridge of his nose, closing his eyes for a moment as Rufus sat silently. But he looked up again when Rufus brought up the matter of lunch.

"I'll eat later, the food that you natively eat..." He looked for the appropriate way to say 'makes me violently sick' so it wouldn't be offending and at last settled for,  
"-it does not sit well with my stomach." His village had experienced famines before, the matter of a few hours would not bother him, he would get one of those sodas or something later.  
"But thank you for letting me know, I will keep it in mind," he smiled faintly at Rufus, nodding his head in a gesture of gratefulness.

It was quiet again, but not uncomfortable. Tseng hadn't known what else to say, it wasn't like they were "friends" by any stretch of the term, but it did seem as though a small truce was forming.

There was the sound of roughly three pairs of feet approaching and three boys about Rufus's age came into the back alley, one of them sporting a broken nose and Tseng realized that this young man had been the start of the whole matter. He raised an eyebrow at Rufus questioningly, waiting like a coiled snake. They were only kids after all, even with three of them taking them out would not be a problem. The space was small and confined there would be no room to gang up, not with five people in the alley.

"Hello Richard," Rufus purred, eyes narrowing. "Can you talk yet, or did they have to wire your jaw too, after I broke your nose?" he asked lowly.

"Shut the fuck up retard. Did your daddy start touching you again? Or did he just kick you around. Every time he fucks up you show up with another bruise, pussy," one of Richards toadies got in on the conversation.

"Fuck off, all three of you are just weak," Rufus spit. "Don't you have someone else to bother?"

Tseng watched the exchange, his eyes only moving between Rufus and the other three, trying to estimate if he needed to interfere or if it would remain at words. His eyes widened slightly at some of the insults and he stored the information away for later.

"We're not the weak ones, we don't need a fucking _Whing_ to protect us," Richard snarled. "Or is he your mail order bride so your dad can have a three way?" Oh the logic must have seemed flawless.

Tseng's eyebrows raised, and had it been anywhere else it might have been somehow funny. But it was rapidly getting old and had a recycled feel to it, as though this was a common occurrence.

Tseng watched them throw back and forth a few more insults and as he saw Richards hand curling into a fist the Turk stepped forward and pointedly between the two opposing parties, snatched Richards wrist and then with a quick twist broke it.

Rufus watched with some satisfaction as the other hit the dirt with a howl. Yes, it hurt to have your wrist broken, especially like that.

He didn't expect one of the toadies to launch themselves over the table at him. He drew his fist back, and with a kick that was as violent as it was pointy nailed him in the balls at the same moment his fist hit his face.

Richard-toadie number one went down with a whimper, and the third just fled.

Rufus stood casually, staring down at the other two. He then spit right on Richards forehead and headed back towards school. The bell was going to ring soon. He glanced back over his shoulder towards Tseng, making sure he was following.

Tseng followed Rufus, not saying anything, his heart not even speeding up from the brief skirmish. Off all the possible outcomes this had been the best one. The boy had shown that he was fast and effective, even if untrained. He had not shrunk away from the violence, had not spooked and didn't appear to have taken it as an insult to his pride and instead had hold his own. Well so long as things were somewhat balanced. But it would do for now.

There should be some peace as well, even if just for a short time, once the administrators found Richard and his friend the message should be quite clear. He kept just slightly closer to Rufus, in the event of retaliation, but doubted there would be any. These were still just kids after all, still liable to spooking.

Rufus sighed as he gathered up his books. Two tests had been scheduled for Monday instead...and that meant an entire weekend at home and worrying about tests. His stomach knotted, and he managed to make it to the restroom to throw up. Those pills did work for pain but he never could find his appetite with them, let alone keep anything down.

He knew there would be a limo waiting outside by the curb, along with the buses and cars. He knew he should go to it...but he didn't want to. Worse than anything else he could think of. It was the weekend and his mother wasn't home... that meant the touching and trying to avoid his father.

He knew Tseng couldn't be far away...so he did the best he could and after tossing his bag out the bathroom window, crawled out right after it. He started to run.

Tseng had suspected something the moment Rufus had stepped into the boy's bathroom. Although there was the sound of honest-to-goodness retching, Tseng knew better then to just assume Rufus would rejoin him like an obedient lemming.

_3, 2...1_ the Turk mentally counted down as he exited the building and walked to approximately where the bathroom's widows out be. He caught sight of Rufus's white uniform as the boy exited his field of vision in a flat out run as if the dogs of the underworld were at his heels.

Tseng shook his head, almost bemused, but slightly concerned. A quick wall vault took him to the top of the brick wall that surrounded the school like a prison. He began to run along the top of it after Rufus and it was only a few minutes later that thanks to his training and his longer legs that he caught up to the boy.

He was sorely tempted to ask why exactly Rufus was running like a hunted buck but decided against it. The boy's face was pale and had an expression on it that suggested that he was not mentally in a happy place. The school wall came to a rather abrupt end and Tseng jumped down from it, landing in a crouch and then following after Rufus keeping pace.

Rufus turned to glance at him when he heard the footsteps following. Outrunning would be useless at this point.

"I'm not going back there. I'm going to a friends," he said sternly to Tseng. Of course, he had no real friends to spend the night with, no reason to escape. He turned then again, running becoming a walk. He just wanted to sleep somewhere safe...and he headed for the slums.

There was a drop through that led him straight down and to the highest pressure check station before it cascaded into the slums and beneath the plate. That was where he was going. There were some other boys there who sometimes let him sleep against the pressure station near them. It was warm there, and quiet. He didn't want Tseng to know where this place was, but hell if he would go back home right now.

Tseng still kept pace with him until he reached the edge, where Rufus tossed his bag down, and then taking his jacket off to wrap around his fists he slid down the nearest pipe without burning his hands. This of course, made his ribs hurt even worse, but he tried to not to show it as he caught his breath at the bottom.

Tseng didn't argue the matter, didn't question it, and didn't try to detour Rufus from his intended escape, in fact he didn't say anything. The Wutain just committed the area to memory and the words. Granted he could see the logic to it, after all the average person is seventy percent more likely to die in their own home then anywhere else. All of the motions Rufus went through seemed routine, as if he'd done this before.

The Turk followed Rufus down the pipe, ignoring the hot metal and once at the bottom, took in the area. He'd been in similar areas as part of his training but not this specific place, but the differences were few and far between. He looked at Rufus, his expression neutral still, if only a little curious as to the grand scheme of things logic behind the blonde boy's actions, but said nothing. He suspected Rufus had a "safe house" of sorts here, mostly because you would never think of a Shin-Ra down in the slums.

And Tseng had no intent of "snitching" on his charge. In fact if coming here would get Rufus to just stop for a short bit, Tseng fully intend to find something to eat. He had caught the scent of rice cooking somewhere and figured a bowl wouldn't hurt Rufus either, it would be easy on his stomach after the vomiting the boy had just done. If only the boy would stop moving for a moment and settle. Although Tseng doubted that Rufus would be so considerate.

Rufus glanced to Tseng again, and then headed further down into the drop-off. After climbing down more, he found one of the boys he had been hoping to find, wandering and hunting for rats. "Darren?" He asked softly. The dark haired boy glanced to him once, and then nodded, rough made spear tight in his hands. The orphan's eyes drifted to Tseng, then to Rufus again.

"He… should not be here," The boy said, just before leading them both towards one of the tents. "If he doesn't tell on us, he can eat with us...you should eat too...taking those things doesn't make you get better any faster you know?" The boy said, as if he knew, and Rufus tilted his head.

Rice...did sound good. He didn't even really mind the rat when it was cooked right. He'd tried a long time ago because he'd wanted to know. "Do you have enough? I brought a bag from home." Rufus said, offering it out to the boy, who took it with a sound of thanks. "You won't get hit this time?"

"I didn't tell him, he won't hit me for something he doesn't even know is gone," Rufus said lowly. "Did you get any big ones?" he asked. Darren laughed, then nodded to the nearby tallest bent pipe, where several rats hung, freshly dressed.

Tseng followed the two saying nothing and just taking in the environment, the conversation and the scent of rodent blood. Not all together unappealing and it sorely reminded him of his home for a moment, especially when they came upon the small clusters of tents. He fell further back, from the two boys but remained with in listening distance to seem like less of a threat to Darren. He wasn't sure what to expect down here and didn't want to impose on the already struggling youths. _Patience_, he reminded himself and he rubbed his temple for a moment.

They were both invited into the tent by Darren after a moment. "God, we're all unwanted here, you look hungry. Here," he offered a small bowl of rice to Tseng. "We're brothers anyway...my parents died here though...do you still have yours?" Darren asked curiously, bright eyes meeting Tseng's.

Rufus just smiled a little to himself, and took a bowl of rice and some rat. It was way better than anything the school offered. He hurt and he was tired, but food, especially soft rice like this with a little broth and meat, sounded better than any other kind of feast. He settled to a tattered rug beside a small blond girl who looked just as tired. He nodded once to her. She played cards with him sometimes...to keep his mind off of bad things...

Tseng blinked, surprised by the offered kindness but accepted the bowl and inclined his head in a gesture of thankfulness. He knelt, across from Rufus and Darren, listening to the boy talk, again surprised at his interest. He thought for a moment before answering.

"My mother is resting with my ancestors in the Celestial Plains," Tseng answered softly. "My father still lives last I heard of him. But that was nearly three years ago." He paused again closing his eyes to offer silent thanks for the food and company.

When he opened his eyes he saw Rufus sitting next to a blonde girl who looked like she was too small for her age, he didn't seem to have an adverse dislike for her and Tseng smiled faintly as he ate.

"You and Rufus go back a while?" he asked Darren, feeling that he should repay the curiosity in kind but without impeding too much into what be dangerous territory.

Darren thought about it for a while, and then nodded slightly. "He ran down here one night, some guy chasing him. We hid him and he's been nice to us ever since. His daddy's a big deal but he's just like us. Already an orphan...we give him a safe place to sleep...we all need that. He's pretty good at killing rats too...and the girl over there, Jenna. She likes playing cards with him."

Tseng nodded, taking in the information, considering it carefully if he should ask another question.  
"Thank you," he said. "It is good to know he has allies," Tseng didn't use the word friends because he doubted either boy considered the other a friend, but at least they were on the same side.  
"How long will he stay here?" Tseng asked, trying to anticipate how they would avoid Rufus's father should this after school trip go later into the evening.

"Days, a lot on weekends..." eyes that were far too old for their age surveyed his face. "It's not right, my parents are dead and they love me more than his dad ever has," the boy's shoulders slumped. He knew he'd said too much. "Sorry, I gotta go get more rats...don't start trouble or they'll kick me out too, okay?" He said, before standing and jogging out of the tent.

When Rufus had finished his food he lay down beside Jenna slowly, a tiny grimace passing his features. He would just rest for a second. He laid his head down onto his book-bag with a wince. She gave him a sad look, and covered him with her dusty school jacket.

Tseng had no intent of starting trouble or sharing this information with anyone, but Darren had moved as if spooked before the Turk could have responded. Every part of him screamed for action to do something, anything. But those weren't his orders. His orders were to react to active threats, not to comfort or care about his charge. But even using that mentality, how could he protect from the threat within? The thing that everyone suspected but no one would raise a hand to stop, that was torn at even by his peers.

But as right now that was all it was rumors, no concrete proof, just a rich kid with a dad who had ridiculous standards and got rowdy when he had a few drinks and the kid, as all children do at some point ran away from home to avoid it. Tseng realized then that he was frowning in concentration, because it was just too convenient.

He looked at Rufus, who was lying down now, looking exhausted on more levels then one. He was next to the girl, who had covered him with her jacket. These orphans where truly the only allies that Rufus had. Tseng stood and moved from the tent, not saying a word and flipped open his cell phone. He'd not expected to actually get a signal down here but found that he still had two bars.

He pressed a button on speed dial and waited for about half a second before Verdot picked up on the other line.

"Report," the lead Turk's voice was low.  
"Sir I do not like this," Tseng spoke, his voice equally low. It was quiet for a moment on the other end of the line.  
"It is not your assignment to _like_ the situation Tseng," Verdot said his voice flat and dangerous.  
"But sir-"  
"Are you a Turk or not?" Verdot cut in. "If you are then you will circumvent this situation and find a solution. If these is none to be found then you will carry out your orders with as minimal collateral damage as possibl-"  
"He's only a child!" Tseng's voice raised slightly and more of his Wutain accent became highly apparent as it always did when his emotions got the better of him. He was breathing heavily and his grip on the phone was shaking. It was quiet again.

"Tseng," Verdot spoke as if speaking to a small child. "You will complete this mission. I don't care how nor what methods you use to do so. Otherwise you will be terminated. This is only your first mission after all and I would hate to waste such promising talent. Are we clear?"

"Yes sir," Tseng said tightly and then the line went dead. He swore softly in Wutain and almost threw his phone but managed to regain control of himself and pinched the bridge of his nose, taking several deep breaths before returning to the tent and kneeling again, this time closer to Tseng and the blonde girl, who looked at him mistrustfully.

Rufus whimpered softly in his sleep, and the girl stroked his hair once until the terrified expression left his face and he slumbered again. His hand moved to his mouth like he might at one time have sucked his thumb, and the urge to self comfort was still there even if it had left in his waking hours.  
"Are you his bodyguard?" The girl asked, expression as worried as it was distrustful. "I think he's sick," she touched his forehead once gently.

Tseng frowned, watching Rufus closely as the girl spoke.  
"In essence yes," Tseng answered and carefully he moved closer to them. "Has his condition worsened since he started coming here?" He gently touched the back of his hand to Rufus's forehead, it was warm but not unusually so. Delicately Tseng rested his fingers along the underside of Rufus's jaw, pressing slightly, looking for inflammation of the lymph nodes. He found none. But he did find several faded bruises along the boy's neck and some that were hidden mostly by the high collar of his uniform.

"I think he's more exhausted than anything, sometimes illness can result from too much stress," Tseng said to the girl softly, stroking Rufus's bangs back slightly. He reached into his jacket and took out the small vial that held the comfrey oil. "This all I can do for now, to help his bruises heal," Tseng said to the girl as he put two drops his fingers and rubbed them lightly over the boy's bruised neck and eye as if he was stroking a new born kitten.

"Do you know of an apothecary anywhere here?" Even if it was an unsavory one, they were better then the synthetic materia and drugs that most people in Midgar used.

"There is one down in the slums by where the flower-girl lives. One of us can show you, if you promise to help him feel better," she said shyly. Tseng was exotic and foreign looking, and she was just old enough to notice such things.

Rufus snuffled in his sleep, leaning into the soft touch at his eye and neck that soothed the pain. His breathing slowed a little more and he seemed even more deeply asleep...

Tseng nodded, watching as the oil worked its way beneath the skin, this was highly concentrated and would work longer and faster allowing for Rufus to rest. When in pain the human body naturally released adrenaline. When one was in a constant state of pain the sleep was disturbed and stage IV REM was never achieved, it interfered thus with alertness, reaction time, cognitive thinking and memory as well as damaging the immune system.

"I am his Turk after all," he said, almost fondly. "It is my duty to ensure that he remains alive and well. He's just a child..." Tseng shook his head, sighing. "I think he will sleep for a while, if one of you can show me, I will do what I can." _Assuming he doesn't try to slip out on me again._ "Its difficult to know exactly what he needs, I'm sure you know that he doesn't easily divulge information."

"He's quiet a lot...it must be difficult...being him," she glanced up to Tseng. "I'll take you down to see her, he'll be okay, the others will watch over him," she whispered softly. She smiled to him again then, and stood. "You can meet the flower girl...she's really nice too!"

Rufus stirred again, but then settled, as if noticing Tseng's absence. "I think he likes you. He let you stay with him, not like the last couple," She said. "Come on, let's go."

She hurried out the door, waving to her fellow rat catcher as she led Tseng into the city.

Tseng nodded, glancing back once more at Rufus before stepping out of the tent.  
"I'm not sure about liking, I think he tolerates me because he doesn't have the energy to shake me," Tseng mused as he followed the girl.

The girl ignored his statement, and then led the way to the city and Tseng followed. They came upon a small girl in a pink dress who looked younger then Rufus, stationed at a cart of flowers that stood out brilliantly against the grim and dankness of the slums. The girl herself seemed to be radiating slightly, which the Turk wanted to write off as an effect of her bubbly personality, but he knew better. A word of in Wutain, for he didn't know how it would translate into Midgarian, slipped from his lips in a slightly awed whisper. But then he shook himself and looked at the young woman again. _Gu-kami_, and he knew it. And ancient goddess, here in the form of a mortal child.

He glanced from one girl to the other, looking for introduction. Also trying to find his tongue to see if she might possess the herbs he required.

"Do you want to buy a flower mister?" She asked Tseng sweetly. "You look sad...you're not from here, are you?" She offered one over to him then. "Here just, take one...you look worried too, maybe it will make you feel better?" She asked. She turned to look behind herself, then blinked, and then nodded to a place in thin air as if she could see something they could not. "Oh, someone's sick! We grow the herbs for the nice lady who makes potions. Do you want to see her?" She whirled back to face Tseng, eyes wide with her honest desire to help.

Tseng blinked, opened his mouth to speak and then closed it again as he took the flower. He felt as the girl could see right through him and fought down, with some difficulty, the tradition of his people to hold such demigods in reverence and drop down on one knee. A few soft words of awed prayer left his mouth in Wutaian and then he found his tongue again.

"Yes. Please, I'm just looking for herb oils or packets of them dried," he managed, finding himself unable to pull his eyes from the girl's. She was pure as stark a contrast to the slums and society as the flowers that she grew.

She giggled at him. "I promise, I'm just a person..." She said as she seemed to read his mind yet again. "Follow me, I'll show you her shop."

The old woman smiled at him as he entered her shop. "Ah...a child of Wutai...those are rare here," she said in Wutaian after her normal shop greeting. "What do you look for today, my son?"

The flower girl followed behind shyly. This old woman seemed to like her so she wasn't too worried.

Tseng did not believe the girl for a moment on the state of her normality, yet he followed her without hesitation.

Upon entering the shop Tseng was greeted by the scent of flowers and herbs and the air was heavy with steam from brewing potions. He blinked several times at the musing of the old woman who ran the shop and bit back the stupid question of 'You speak Wutaian?'. She herself did not appear to be from any of the regions of his homeland and she spoke without the accent that came from some of the dialects, her words crisp and sharp.

He bowed to her, his upper body bending slightly in acknowledgment of her seniority. And then quickly ran down a small laundry list of herbs both dry and extracted into oil and produced good coin for it.

She quickly and efficiently produced the herbs, potions and tinctures that he ordered, and threw in a bonus bit of free _rooibos_ for his troubles. He was paying well, She appreciated that.

"Here you are sir, I hope wellness follows you all of your days," she said politely.

"Will whoever is sick feel better now?" The blond girl asked sweetly, even though she already knew the answer and then some...

Tseng gave a grateful bow to the woman and returned the blessing, adding good business to the saying as well. He discreetly tipped her, it would pay to have a connection who could get the traditional medicines and it never hurt to start making connections early. Especially if she could manage to get comfrey or other traditional Wutaian plants.

He turned his attention to her as they left the shop and they went back to her flower cart where the rat catcher girl was waiting still.

"Hopefully. Although I think what is truly ailing him won't be remedied so easy. All I can do for now is try to ease his pain," Tseng said, smiling faintly at the girl's good-natured optimism. He didn't consider that the girl might have a hint of omnipotence as a gift and was just grateful to have such willing help.  
"My name is Tseng," he said to the little girl as they neared her cart. "I didn't catch yours, what is it?" He asked as he placed a few coins in the little metal jar attached to one end of the girl's cart, it was the least he could do for her help. Even if it wiped out his per-diem for the week.

"It's Aerith, Mr. Tseng." She said calmly. "Don't worry. Someday...you'll have everything you've ever wanted and needed...so don't give up," she murmured softly. She nodded to him gently then.

Jenna was nodding to him too, smiling just a little. "You can make him feel better now, right?" She whispered. "We should head home soon too...he might wake up. He doesn't sleep very long, even when he's tired," she tilted her head to glance at Tseng, hinting he should follow.

He stared at her curiously for a long moment before Jenna spoke to him and suggested they get back. At the mention of Rufus's lack of any real length of sleep Tseng was immediately glad that he'd been able to get a good amount of Skullcap and Valerian, they were good for nerves and sleep inducing. The Valerian also helped to ease internal pain that the comfrey oil couldn't reach.

Tseng gave a polite bow to Aerith and followed Jenna back to the cluster of tents.

"I can do what I can. Although from the sounds of things he would do better if he was put in foster care instead of that of his father's," Tseng said to her mildly. At the moment all he would try to do would be to relief the pain and the fever. He wasn't sure how much movement Rufus intended on doing and wasn't going to try to force more sleep on the boy if they still had to make it back to the Shin-Ra house.  
"Thank you for your help," Tseng said to Jenna as they approached the tents.

Rufus opened his eyes and sighed, sitting up painfully he folded up Jenna's coat. He couldn't go home...but he knew he couldn't stay here or risk the others security. He glanced up to see Tseng, only a little surprised that he was still here. He was carrying a bag of something.

"You went shopping?" He asked hoarsely, rubbing his eyes and tugging his fingers through his hair in a gesture of ragged exhaustion.

Tseng frowned slightly in concern, the boy looked half passed death even with the little bit of sleep he'd gotten. The Turk set the bag down and knelt in front of Rufus, tracing his long fingers lightly over the boy's neck, able to get a more accurate check of his lymph nodes now. Nothing remarkable, although Rufus's pulse was racing, it probably was constantly from stress, and his skin had a dry sickly feel to it. The kid was headed for a break down and at this point there was no detouring it, all Tseng could do was ease it a bit.

The Turk made no reply about the shopping, and began to go through the bag, pulling out various containers of herbs. Speaking to Jenna in a low voice he set her to get some hot water. He mixed several pinches of each one into what might have been a coffee filter, Jenna returned with the water and a cup and Tseng poured the water over the herbs, effectively flash scalding them. The resultant tea was a strange red and purple mix which smelled strongly of various types of mints and other spring herbs.

"You have a fever, your nerves are shot to hell and your heart is racing," Tseng set the cup in front of Rufus. "You also have internal bruising. This will help with the pain and assist in healing also will sooth your nerves without causing drowsiness." He sat back on his heels waiting. He made no demand that Rufus drink the strange tea, only waited. Patience.

Rufus stared at the tea, a mixture of curiosity and exhaustion lifting his eyebrows. Hesitantly, he took it. If it were poison, he really didn't care. If it helped, he really hoped it did. Everything hurt and he wasn't really sure if he could walk back home right now.

He sniffed it once thoughtfully, and it really just smelled like grass and dirt and mint...which really wasn't that bad of a smell when one ate rats from time to time.

He took a slow sip, and it actually did not taste all that disgraceful. Actually it felt nice on his throat and the steam felt like it was clearing his head. Just holding the stuff made his racing pulse slow and the safety of the tent allowed him to forget about home just for a second, if only to get a grip on himself.

The Turk nodded to himself, glad that Rufus was drinking it. He knew just as Rufus did that they couldn't take much more time in this place. He didn't remind Rufus that they would need to leave soon, he allowed the boy these few moments of peace. This was all the defense he could offer the boy now, eventually he hoped Rufus would trust him more especially since it seemed as though they were going to be stuck together for some time.

Tseng almost moved to comfort the boy but decided against it, not wanting to spook him. Instead he just settled closer to Rufus, silent as he usually was but not oppressing, not crushing.

Rufus wished, just for a moment, in a way he shouldn't have to just lean into the others arms. No one had ever really tried to help him like this before when he ran away... He finished the tea and looked around, eyes longing. Someday...he would have a safe place of his own. Someday he would have everything he had ever wanted, and no one would hurt him again. He bit his lip and let out a long slow sigh.

"We should head back," he said, leaving the 'Before my father gets angry and comes looking for us both,' unsaid.

The longing in the boy's expression did not go unnoticed. To go home was hell, but they couldn't stay here. Tseng gathered the herbs and stood thanking Jenna for her help again. Then he put a hand on Rufus's shoulder before they stepped out of the tent, the boy's body felt cold even through the school uniform, but at least the worst of the nerve tremors had subsided. Tseng just rested his hand there, warm and then saying nothing he stepped out of the tent and held the flap open for Rufus to follow.


End file.
